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PCD
PCD is the debut album by the Pussycat Dolls. The album was released on September 12, 2005 on A&M Records. The album was recorded between 2004 and 2005. The album's producers were Timbaland, Rich Harrison, Cee-Lo Green, Polow da Don, Sean Garrett, will.i.am, Ron Fair, Young Smoke, Siobhan Fahey, Andy Chatterley, Kwamé, and Robin Antin. In the United States, the album peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200, selling over 2.9 million copies Worldwide, it sold over 9 million copies. The album went top 10 in countries such as Australia, Canada, & the United Kingdom and topped the Irish & New Zealand charts. The album incorporates a mixture of contemporary pop/dance/R&B originals, jazz-influenced tracks and cover versions. The group have cited among their influences Gwen Stefani, Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul and M.I.A.. PCD is the only album to feature all six original members of the group. Album Background & Production The Pussycat Dolls were created by choreographer Robin Antin and her roommate Christina Applegate in 1993 after inviting several dancers to explore Antin's idea of classic Las Vegas-style burlesque and give it a more contemporary spin. In 1995, the group began performing every Thursday at Johnny Depp's Los Angeles club, the Viper Room. In 2002, Gwen Stefani was invited to sing and perform with the Dolls and brought along Interscope Geffen A&M chairman Jimmy Iovine and then-president of A&M Records; both took interest into turning it in a singing group. In 2003, Antin struck a joint venture with Interscope Records to develop the Pussycat Dolls into a brand, with Iovine assigning the project to Fair. Fair stated that he wanted to create an album which would "involve music and visuals". He explained that "there's going to be some technological changes as well as creative changes in the way we go about it." The auditions drew about 500 aspiring performers, of which two singers (Nicole Scherzinger & Melody Thornton) were recruited, joining Carmit Bachar, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberly Wyatt to form a new recording group. Fair stated that even though "there were some adequate voices in the original group," Scherzinger and Thornton where needed "to bring the ability." In 2004, they recorded "We Went as Far as We Felt Like Going" for the "Shark Tale" movie soundtrack and recorded their own version of "Sway" which was released as a single to promote the movie, "Shall We Dance?" At the suggestion of Doug Morris (then chairman of Universal Music Group), "Don't Cha" (which was originally recorded by Tori Alamaze and became a minor success on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart) was given to the Pussycat Dolls as the label was trying to reinvent the girl group. While "Don't Cha" became an international success worldwide, an album hadn't been recorded yet. Fair stated, "we scrambled, got into formation" and worked on the album within 30 days at The Record Plant in Hollywood, California. According to Scherzinger, they took the time to put out the best record possible and further explained that they were very selective with their songs and producers. As one of the executive producers, Fair enlisted a wide range of songwriters and producers for PCD, including CeeLo Green, Rich Harrison, Timbaland, and will.i.am. While searching for songs for the album, an A&R at Interscope Records and friend of Siobhan Fahey, a founding member of the girl group Bananarama, played to Iovine the song, "Bitter Pill" which was included on Shakespears Sister's 2009 album, "Songs from the Red Room." After Fahey emailed the backing track to the label, it was renamed "Hot Stuff (I Want You Back)" as they added Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" in the chorus. Although Fahey didn't like the group's version, financially, she was delighted as it helped her fund her recordings. Tracklisting # Don't Cha (featuring Busta Rhymes) 4:32-(written by Thomas Callaway, Anthony Ray, and Trevor Smith) # Beep (featuring will.i.am) 3:48-(written by William Adams, Kara DioGuardi, and Jeff Lynne) # Wait a Minute (featuring Timbaland) 3:41-(written by Timothy Mosley & Keri Hilson) # Stickwitu 3:26-(written by Frannie Golde, Kasia Livingston, and Robert D. Palmer) # Buttons 3:45-(written by Sean Garrett, Jamal Jones, Jason Perry, and Nicole Scherzinger) # I Don't Need a Man 3:39-(written by Rich Harrison, Nicole Scherzinger, Kara DioGuardi, and Vanessa Brown) # Hot Stuff (I Want You Back) 3:46-(written by Peter Belotte, Harold Faltermeyer, Kevin Forsey, and Siobhan Fahey) # How Many Times, How Many Lies 3:55-(written by Diane Warren) # Bite the Dust 3:32-(written by Keri Hilson & Kwamé Holland) # Right Now 2:27-(written by Herbie Mann & Carl Sigman) # Tainted Love\Where Did Our Love Go 3:25-(written by Ed Cobb, Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Edward Holland, Jr.) # Feeling Good 4:19-(written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse) # Sway 3:12-(written by Pablo Beltran Ruiz and Norman Gimbel)-(Bonus Track) # Flirt 2:56-(written by Nicole Scherzinger, Kara DioGuardi, and Greg Wells)-(Bonus Track) # We Went as Far as We Felt Like Going 3:50-(written by Bob Crewe & Kenny Nolan)-(Bonus Track) Production *'Photography': James White *'Package design': Julian Peploe *'Publicist': Dave Tomberlin *'Mastered': Brian Gardner *'Artist development': Michelle Thomas *'Executive producer': Ron Fair and Jimmy Iovine *'Co-executive producer': Robin Antin *'Management': Jeff Haddad *'Management coordinator': Jeff Norskog *'Lead and background vocals': Nicole Scherzinger *'Additional lead and background vocals': Carmit Bachar, Melody Thornton, and Kaya Jones *'Additional background vocals': Jessica Sutta, Ashley Roberts, Kimberly Wyatt, and Keri Hilson Singles # Don't Cha (released on April 26, 2005) # Stickwitu (released on September 20, 2005 in the United States; released on November 28, 2005 in the United Kingdom) # Beep (released on February 26, 2006) # Buttons (released on May 2, 2006 in the United States; released on June 26, 2006 in the United Kingdom) # I Don't Need a Man (released on September 25, 2006 in Europe & Canada; released on October 21, 2006 in Australia; released in May 2007 in the United States) # Wait a Minute (released on March 26, 2007) Commercial Performance "PCD" debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 after having sold 99,000 copies during the first week. On its 45th week, while remaining within the top 50 of the Billboard 200 chart, the album rebounded back to the top ten with 3% sales increase after having sold 43,000 copies. The album has sold 2.9 million copies by September 2008. In January 2011, the record was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of 2,000,000 copies. In the United Kingdom, PCD debuted at number eight on the UK Albums Chart with first week sales of 23,900, registering the second highest entry. The release of the album's fourth single "Buttons" helped the album increase sales for six consecutive weeks, setting a new peak of seven. As of May 5, 2009, "PCD" sold 1,246,769 copies in the United Kingdom and was certified quadruple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in July 2013. In Australia, the album debuted at number 16 on the ARIA Top 100 Albums chart dated October 3, 2005. On the issue dated July 31, 2006, the album reached a new peak at number eight after leaping eight places. In New Zealand, the album debuted at number twenty-three on September 19. Following three consecutive number one singles ("Don't Cha", "Stickwitu" & "Beep"), the album reached the top spot for two non-consecutive weeks making the Pussycat Dolls the first girl group in over six years to top the albums chart since Bardot with their debut self-titled album. Critical Reception Writing for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine provided a favorable review, opining that the great thing about the album are the producers and songwriters who are willing to play with the group's "hyper-sexual image, creating a sleek, sexy sound ideal for both nightclubs and strip joints." However, he did go on to criticize the albums's ballads. Slant Magazine writer Sal Cinquemani felt that if "the Pussycat Dolls really want to make their mark in the giant litter box that is popular music today, they need more of the big band burlesque of 'Right Now' and less of Diane Warren." In his consumer guide for MSN Music, Robert Christgau gave the album a "one-star honorable mention", commenting that the group is "sexier than your average prefab sexpots, but no fabber." Elysa Gardner of USA Today wrote that despite their superficiality and "insipid lyrics" acknowledged that "lead singer Nicole Scherzinger and at least a couple of her fellow Dolls have supple voices." In a more negative review, Raymond Fiore of Entertainment Weekly commented that "not even B-squad urban cabaret pop from A-list production heavyweights can arouse our interest for a whole 45 minutes." Darryl Sterdan, when reviewing the album for Jam!, described the covers as "embarrassing" and the ballads as "overcooked". A reviewer of The Ledger wrote that the album is "essentially a solo release" from Scherzinger while noting songs like "Right Now" "make it clear that she really needs to keep around those dancing, singing/not-singing gals." PCD won the award for "Best Album — International" at the 2006 TMF Awards, where the group was also nominated for "Best Pop — International". Album Chart Category:Albums